It seems laughable now, but there were legitimate questions about how Creighton would fare in the Big East following the graduation of National Player of the Year Doug McDermott in 2014.

The Jays were terrific in their first season in the Big East, winning 27 games behind the second-rated offense in the country and earning a three seed in the NCAA Tournament.

The year after McDermott graduated, the Jays fell off — hard. They went from 14-4 in the conference to 4-14, and finished that season 14-19 overall. Their downturn was short-lived, however.

Creighton has won at least 20 games in every season since then.

Greg McDermott has proven himself to be much more than than Doug’s dad over the past decade, and as he winds down an outstanding career he faces some big question marks heading into the 2025-26 season — namely, how his Jays will look following the departure of four-time (!) Big East Defensive Player of the Year Ryan Kalkbrenner.

Kalkbrenner’s arrival vaulted Creighton from one of the better programs in the Big East into one of the best in the country. They are one of a handful of teams to win at least one game in the NCAA Tournament in each of the past five seasons — a stretch that includes a pair of Sweet 16 runs and an Elite 8 appearance.

They were a blown call away from the Final Four in 2023 (when they could have faced off against a Connecticut program they’ve fared very well against in the national title game).

Their Big East win-loss records this decade are beyond impressive: 13-5 (the year before Kalkbrenner’s arrival when the season was cancelled due to the pandemic), then 14-6, 12-7, 14-6, 14-6, and 15-5.

Kalkbrenner isn’t the only significant loss from a year ago. Gone are all-world shooter Steven Ashworth, a tough scoring guard in Jamiya Neal, as well as Pop Isaacs and a steady center in Frederick King.

Regardless, thanks to McDermott’s success and a talented transfer portal haul, Creighton is widely anticipated to be the league’s third best team behind St. John’s and UConn in the season ahead.

Let’s take a look at what’s changed and their outlook for next year.

Creighton will defend differently and welcomes promising newcomers.